The spacecraft should re-enter the atmosphere and burn up harmlessly over the Pacific on Saturday.

NASA supplier Orbital ATK launched the capsule to the space station in December, full of food, clothes and other goods. The astronauts removed the precious contents, then filled it with garbage for incineration.

Commander Scott Kelly and Timothy Kopra, the two Americans on board, sent computer commands to set the Cygnus free.

Orbital ATK plans to launch another Cygnus from Cape Canaveral, Florida, late next month. The flight was delayed a few weeks after black mould contaminated some of the cargo bags. Technicians had to disinfect everything.

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